CWAer Mike O'Day Reminds Vermonters of Bernie Sanders' Support of FairPoint Strikers

On a sun-dappled day, Lake Champlain shimmering behind him, Mike O'Day gave one of the major introductions of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in Vermont last week. O'Day, vice president of CWA Local 1400's District 6, which covers Vermont, told the crowd of several thousand people exactly why he came to introduce Sanders.

Michael O'Day, an officer of CWA Local 1400, tells crowd how Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders stood with FairPoint workers.

Sanders was making the official announcement of his 2016 presidential bid.

"Bernie's message is clear," O'Day said. "A level playing field for the American worker and no trade deals that benefit other countries and not the U.S. first. NAFTA was a disaster for the American worker and the Trans-Pacific Partnership is much worse."

He continued:

"This past winter, we were on strike against FairPoint for four-and-half long, cold months on Hinesburg Road. Our fight was textbook, Wall Street dictating a rate of return at the expense of workers. After the contract expired, FairPoint imposed the elimination of all retirement benefits, healthcare, pensions and job security language.

"There wasn't a week that passed without Bernie checking in on our well-being. He asked to host a Thanksgiving Dinner for all the strikers and their families in Vermont. He wanted to make sure that everyone had a great holiday meal. There were 200 of us at Burlington High School that night. Bernie met with every family and let us know that he supported our decision to strike and would help us in any way he could. I can't thank him, Phil, David and the rest of his staff, enough."

Nearly 2,000 CWA and IBEW members in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont went back to work at FairPoint Communications after enduring a historic 18-week strike and gaining new contracts that provided improvements in health care, restrictions on outsourcing and elimination of two-tier wages.